Cotterell, Jack
Primary Name: Cotterell, John “Jack”
Filed as: cotterell_john_jack
Also known as: John Cotterell; Jack Cotterell; John Cottrell; Jack Cottrell
Occupation / Association: Miner; prospector
Born: circa 1865, Albany, Linn County, Oregon
Died: August 12, 1910, Juneau, Alaska
Parents:
Spouse: Married
Children:
Associated places: Albany, Linn County, Oregon; Douglas, Alaska; Yankee Basin, Alaska
Keywords: John Jack Cotterell, John Cotterell, Jack Cotterell, John Cottrell, Yankee Basin mine owner
Biography
John “Jack” Cotterell was born in Albany, Linn County, Oregon, around 1865. He was married.
He came to Douglas around 1897, where he engaged in mining and prospecting. Cotterell owned a mine in Yankee Basin. His brother, James Cottrell, also lived in Douglas.
Cotterell died August 12, 1910, at St. Ann's Hospital due to complications from a bowel operation and was buried in the Douglas City Cemetery. Funeral services were held at St. Luke's Church with Rev. David T. Gillmor presiding.
Sources
Tags: John Cotterell, Jack Cotterell, John Cottrell, Douglas miners, Yankee Basin mine
Coffin, Francis A.
Primary Name: Coffin, Francis A.
Filed as: coffin_francis_a
Also known as: Francis Coffin
Occupation / Association: Douglas resident
Born:
Died:
Parents:
Spouse:
Children:
Associated places: Douglas, Alaska
Keywords: Francis A Coffin, Francis Coffin, Coffin family Douglas Alaska
Biography
Francis A. Coffin lived in Douglas almost all of his life. He was a nephew of Sarah A. Foutaine.
Coffin died of consumption at St. Ann's Hospital. Funeral services were held at the Catholic Church, and he was buried in the Douglas City Cemetery.
Sources
Tags: Francis A Coffin, Francis Coffin, Coffin family, Douglas Alaska residents
Armstrong, Robert
Primary Name: Armstrong, Robert
Filed as: armstrong_robert
Also known as: Robert Armstrong
Occupation / Association: Miner; Treadwell Mine worker
Born: Belfast, County Down, Northern Ireland
Died: December 1911, Douglas, Alaska
Parents: Unknown
Spouse: Unknown
Children: Unknown
Associated places: Belfast, County Down, Northern Ireland; Douglas, Alaska; Treadwell, Alaska
Keywords: Robert Armstrong, Armstrong Robert, Treadwell Mine worker, Douglas Alaska miner, Douglas City Cemetery burial
Biography
Robert Armstrong was born in Belfast, County Down, Northern Ireland.
He later immigrated to Alaska and worked at the Treadwell Mine, one of the largest gold mining operations in the Juneau-Douglas mining district.
Armstrong died in December 1911 after shooting himself in the lung while in Douglas, Alaska. He was treated at St. Ann’s Hospital but did not recover.
He is buried in the Douglas City Cemetery. The funeral service was officiated by Reverend J.H. Warmanen.
Sources
Find-A-Grave memorial for Robert Armstrong
Tags: Robert Armstrong, Armstrong family, Treadwell Mine workers, Douglas Alaska miners, Douglas City Cemetery, Belfast Northern Ireland immigrants, Juneau-Douglas mining district
Yoshitaro, Kitakojima
Primary Name: Kitakojima Yoshitaro
Filed as: Yoshitaro, Kitakojima
Also known as: Yoshitaro Kitakojima
Nationality: Japanese
Occupation / Association: Treadwell boarding house worker
Associated places: Douglas, Alaska; Treadwell; Douglas Asian Cemetery
Born: 1871, Japan
Died: August 2, 1900 – Douglas, Alaska
Burial: Douglas Asian Cemetery
Keywords: Japanese immigrant; Treadwell; Douglas cemetery; Alaska mining history
Biography
Kitakojima Yoshitaro was born in 1871 in Japan. He arrived in Douglas, Alaska, around 1898 and was employed at the Treadwell boarding house. Yoshitaro died on August 2, 1900, at the age of 28 in St. Ann’s Hospital in Douglas. He left behind a father, mother, wife, and child in Japan, as well as a brother living on Douglas Island. He was buried in the Douglas Asian Cemetery. The funeral service was conducted by Reverend H. Hammond Cole, and thirty-four of his countrymen attended the burial.
Sources
- Find-A-Grave Memorial
- Douglas Asian Cemetery burial records
Douglas City Founded
When Dick Harris and Joe Juneau returned to Sitka with news of their find and the rush was on. Prospectors flocked to the area and began staking claims. A French Canadian by the name of French Pete Errusard learned of a gold bearing outcrop on Douglas Island across the Gastineau Channel from the new town of Juneau.
He staked adjacent claims in 1881 that were eventually sold along with others to John Treadwell, who was representing California investors. The mining town of Treadwell was soon established along with the town of Douglas City. Juneau and Douglas grew along with the mines as more people came to the area not only to mine but to start businesses.
Read morePatterson, Marguerite
Primary Name: Hudson, Marguerite A.
Filed as: Hudson, Marguerite A.
Also known as: Marguerite A. Patterson; Margaret Hudson
Occupation / Association: Cook; Charter Member, Pioneers of Alaska Juneau Igloo No. 6
Associated places: Juneau, Alaska; Douglas, Alaska; Seattle, Washington; Pennsylvania
Keywords: Marguerite A Hudson, Margaret Hudson Patterson, Joseph C Patterson miner, St Ann's Hospital Juneau cook, Pioneers of Alaska Igloo 6 charter members, Douglas Alaska pioneer families
Biography
Marguerite A. Hudson was a Charter Member of the Pioneers of Alaska, Juneau Igloo No. 6. She was born in April 1881 in Pennsylvania.
Hudson came to Juneau in January 1896 from Seattle, Washington, where she was employed as a cook for St. Ann's Hospital and School.
In 1901, she married Joseph C. Patterson, a gold miner, in Douglas, Alaska.
The couple had two children. Their daughter, Margaret Agnes Patterson, was born in Alaska in June 1902, and their son, Joseph C. Patterson, was born in Alaska in April 1905.
Joseph C. Patterson died in November 1928.
Sources
1900 U.S. Federal Census, Juneau, St. Ann's School and Hospital.
1910 U.S. Federal Census, Douglas, Alaska.
Douglas Island Weekly News, August 7, 1901.
Douglas Island Weekly News, June 4, 1902.
Douglas Island Weekly News, April 19, 1905.
Harris, William John, Senior
Primary Name: Harris, William John, Sr.
Filed as: harris_william_john_sr
Also known as: William John Harris, William J. Harris
Occupation / Association: Miner; Chief of Police, City of Juneau; Charter Member, Pioneers of Alaska Juneau Men’s Igloo No. 6
Born:
Died: February 1928, Juneau, Alaska
Parents:
Spouse:
Children: William John Harris, Jr.
Associated places: Juneau, Alaska; Treadwell, Alaska; Nome, Alaska; Leadville, Colorado
Keywords: William John Harris Sr, William J Harris, Harris family Juneau, Juneau chief of police, Treadwell Mine workers
Biography
William John Harris, Sr., was one of the charter members of the Pioneers of Alaska, Juneau Men’s Igloo No. 6.
Harris was a nephew of Richard “Dick” Harris, who, with his partner Joe Juneau, was among the original settlers of the community that became the city of Juneau. Dick Harris named two of his sons after his nephew; the youngest survived into adulthood as William John Harris, Jr..
After living in Juneau for several years, Richard Harris traveled to Montana in 1882 to visit his brother and returned accompanied by his nephew, William.
William Harris worked for several years at the Treadwell Mine. He also worked in several interior mining camps and in Nome.
After leaving Alaska in the early years of the twentieth century, Harris served for several years as chief of police in Leadville, Colorado. The lure of Alaska eventually drew him north again, and he returned to Juneau about 1908, where he resumed work at the Treadwell Mine.
In 1911 or 1912, Emery Valentine, mayor of Juneau, appointed Harris chief of police for the city. After serving two years in that role, he returned to employment at the Treadwell Mine. Later, he worked at the Alaska-Juneau Mine after it began operations.
Harris spent the final months of his life at St. Ann’s Hospital in Juneau, where he died in February 1928.
Sources
Alaska Weekly, February 24, 1928; Biographies of Alaska-Yukon Pioneers 1850-1950, Vol. 1, pp. 130-131, Ed Ferrell